I wanted to wait for Ron to reply as that was directed to him. I would not be willing to put up the argument that my Duetto any other DB makes the best shots while steaming at the same time. If i am having to make milk drinks in the "full court press" mode I am entertaining, the shots are going into milk drinks, and the difference in shot scoring a 9 and a shot scoring a 10 is not material. If i am making for going for the best i can produce I draw and I steam separately and focus which ever task is at hand.

Contrary to the marketing the principle advantage to me and the reason I went DB was temp control on at the brew head not to be able to do things at once.

Yes i have a reason for leaving SCG off my list, yes it is my opinion, yes it is subjective as opinions are by definition, no don't start a flame war because you disagree.

so, yes to address the specific issue of whether the machine can do both. at once. I have to agree that I make better drinks when I do not multitask the two. I do try, because I would like to be able to do just as well either way (some time in the future). However, I find that not only do I like to watch the shot come out of the bottomless pf (both for aesthetic and diagnostic purposes), I have a much better idea when to stop it, if I'm not trying to froth simultaneously. Also, I find I hold my frothing pitcher more steady with two hands, so I don't like to have to let go with one to stop the shot. Like John, I upgraded from SBDU to DB because of thermal stability and recovery time...also, I intend to plumb in one of these days.

.Always remember the most important thing is what ends up in your cup!

Are you running a cafe? I've have never felt the need to steam and pull a shot at the same time at home. (And funny enough, I also own a Vivaldi).

Like texting and driving, don't take your eyes off what really matters. If you aren't watching your shot progress and cutting it off at the right time, you're probably making less than optimal espresso.

As long as the steam pressure is consistant and ready when your shot stops, that's more than enough.

I pull a shot and steam at the same time with my vivaldi. I start to froth first with 2 hands and when my milk gets warm i plunge the wand and start my shot. The milk is done before the shot finishes so you still have plenty of time to watch the shot and cut it off if need be. Pretty good time saver.

I have had work going on at the house for the last 6 weeks, I have been making the guys 4 doubles at least 3 times a day, not one of those drinks will be as good as the one I focus on for myself, but hey they have not given me a tip yet. LOL. I never thought about how many times I screwed up frothing doing it one handed, no matter how hard I try to time plunging the tip when it is time to turn off the brew button but it seldom works out perfect.

A major reason I have not upgraded from my Oscar is I know it so well, it has become second nature to get the results I want from it and the Vario. I have my grind adjustments all figured out, I have my distribution and tamp figured out, I have my flushes worked out, I really do not have to give very much thought to making a great espresso with my set up and for the first time in my home espresso journey I can just enjoy drinking it. When I upgraded from a very good home roaster to a commercial roaster it took me a year of getting to know the new machine to produce consistent roasts and that was a very frustrating year. When I do upgrade Oscar it most likely be a commercial HX machine but I will wait until the limitations of Oscar out number the comfort level or it has a major break down.

I pull a shot and steam at the same time with my vivaldi. I start to froth first with 2 hands and when my milk gets warm i plunge the wand and start my shot. The milk is done before the shot finishes so you still have plenty of time to watch the shot and cut it off if need be. Pretty good time saver.

No time saved if you pour your milk into the pitcher while your shot is being pulled rather than before hand. Besides, you need a bit of time for the shot to settle and the crema to shrink if you want to do any good latte art.

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